And the Republi-CON Race Continues

UPDATE VII: "A first-term governor whose paucity of government experience may be just what the doctor ordered, Mr. Christie is a jumble of political contradictions. He’s a conservative with some liberal views, a bullying New Jersey politician who frequently talks about compromise, and an obviously reluctant candidate who clearly hears the siren song of the national stage. " Read The New York Times, Christie, Unscripted, Unpredictable G.O.P. Hope.


UPDATE VI: "A new FOX News poll has Mitt Romney back on top, but with just 23% (essentially unchanged from August). Perry is second with 19% (a 10-point drop from the last poll), followed by a rising Herman Cain 17% (up 11 points) and Newt Gingrich 11% (up 8 points). Michele Bachmann has dropped all the way down to just 3% (down 5 points from August and 12 points from July). President Obama beats Romney (45%-42%) and Perry (47%-39%)." Read MSNBC, Perry’s loss isn’t necessarily Romney’s gain.


UPDATE VI: "Herman Cain stunned the Republican political establishment Saturday, easily winning Florida's Presidency 5 straw poll by trumpeting a platform of tax reforms he calls the '9-9-9 Plan.'" Read the St. Petersburg Times, The facts on Herman Cain's 9-9-9 tax reform plan.


UPDATE V: And meet the Not-Mitt, But Not Running non-candidate de jour. Read the Washington Post, Why Chris Christie should — and shouldn’t — run for president.

"That insiders are looking for Gov. Chris Christie of New Jersey to enter the race reveals G.O.P. dissatisfaction." Read The New York Times, Is Christie the Anti-Perry or the Anti-Romney, which includes this 2009 Christie campaign which he'll have to explain to the teabaggers. "It featured extended and positively framed clips of Mr. Obama . . . and interspersed images of supporters of Mr. Christie and Mr. Obama, implying that Mr. Christie would be in the legacy of Mr. Obama’s mandate for 'change'.":



You might remember I suggest Christie for President more than a year ago.


UPDATE IV: Meet the newest Not-Mitt. Read The New York Times, Herman Cain Wins Florida Straw Poll.


UPDATE III: With the Presidency Five straw poll in Florida on Saturday, here are "six takeaways from Thursday’s slugfest in Orlando:

Rick Perry is not ready . . .

Mitt Romney found an answer to the flip-flopper questions . . .

Rick Santorum has eclipsed Michele Bachmann . . .

Jon Huntsman’s lost opportunity . . .

Everyone loves a good joke . . .

Ron Paul is trying to be more serious . . ."

Read Politico, The GOP debate: 6 takeaways.


UPDATE II: "One crude way to forecast the results you might expect to see out of a House race is through its Partisan Voting Index, or P.V.I., a measure of how the district voted relative to others in the past two presidential elections."

By that measure, it ain't lookin good for Obama in 2012.

Read The New York Times, For Democrats, It’s 2010 All Over Again.


UPDATE: In the meantime, there will be a special election today in New York, where a Republican victory "would be seen as proof that Obama’s agenda has been rejected and his re-election chances are weaker than ever.

What to watch for as the results come in:

How much will Obama drag down the Democrat? . . .

Can the Democratic machine be enough? . . .

How die-hard are the Democratic die-hards? . . .

How much will Israel matter? . . .

How strong a victory will Republicans be able to claim? . . .

Read the analysis at Politico, 5 things to watch for in NY-9.

“Here are seven takeaways from Monday’s debate.

Mitt Romney came prepared . . .

Rick Perry did not come prepared . . .

Michele Bachmann’s still got game . . .

Rick Santorum is stepping it up . . .

Ron Paul 2.0 isn’t all that different than the original version . . .

Jon Huntsman can’t quite read a room . . .

Newt Gingrich and Herman Cain are non-factors . . ."

Read the analysis at Politico, The GOP debate: 7 takeaways.

Of course the debate "was feisty and provocative, with many of the candidates relying once again on bogus 'facts' that [had been] previously identified as faulty or misleading." Read the Washington Post, Fact checking the CNN and Tea Party Express debate in Tampa.